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June 30, 2010

A friend of mine recently told me about Mujaddara - a Levantine lentil, rice, and slowly caramelized onion pilaf that is simply seasoned so as not to interfere with the intense flavor of the onions. I was immediately drawn to it because not only do I love all the ingredients involved, but it's also incredibly cheap to make. So I put it on my "to make" list and then forgot about it for a few weeks. Until today. On this day I went into my fridge and noticed the pathetic produce assortment I had left, but then eyed a huge onion tucked away on the side shelf. I knew I had to finally make Mujaddara.

Instructions- Chop onion and add to a large pan with 1 tbsp olive oil. It's important to keep it on medium-low heat, stirring every 30 seconds or so, so that the onions don't burn and all of them are thoroughly caramelized. Continue cooking for 30 minutes. - While the onions cook, add rice to a small pot with 1/2 cup water, bring to boil and simmer for 35-40 minutes.- Add lentils and 1 cup water to another pot, bring to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes.- A few minutes before the onions are done, add the cumin and cinnamon. Stir to combine. - In a large bowl, add cooked rice, lentils and 3/4 onions. Stir and season with S&P as needed. Top with remaining onions. Enjoy!

If you make this properly, everything will be done at roughly the same time so you can just toss everything into a bowl and eat.

You guys, this was another full-mouthed "Oh my God" inducing dish. I just...I don't even know if I have the words. The pictures speak for themselves.

The flavors of the dish are meant to be simple because the star of the show are the sweet, rich, caramelized onions. Some recipes actually only use S&P, but I like to go a little above and beyond. The cinnamon and cumin weren't prevalent much at all, they just added a little hint of spice which complemented the onions quite well. Lovely, lovely dish; I have a feeling almost anyone would enjoy it. Good thing I have leftovers!